


Without Cello, Life would B♭

by Zetal (Rodinia)



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Competition, M/M, Phichit Is The Best Friend Yuuri Could Ask For, Russian Skate Fam, String Quartet AU, musician au, sorry georgi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 00:12:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17151650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rodinia/pseuds/Zetal
Summary: When Anya dumped Georgi, Viktor thought it was horrible timing.  The biggest competition of their career was only two weeks away; Georgi probably wouldn't stop crying for at least the next month.  Things go from bad to worse when Georgi calls them.  From Peru.How do you find a cellist in that short a time?  Oh well, at least Viktor shouldn't be too worried about the plan to take time off after the competition.  If they didn't have a cellist, he could go look for the boy he danced with at Club Euphonia last month...





	Without Cello, Life would B♭

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LocallyGrownAvocado](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LocallyGrownAvocado/gifts).



> Written for YOI Secret Santa. Hope you enjoy!

It was not every day that one saw Yuri Plisetsky too angry to shout at someone. Viktor was torn between his own anger and the desire to laugh at his young cousin. Thank god for Mila, who, while angry, was not speechless about it. “I cannot believe you, Georgi. You can’t seriously expect us to just accept this. I know Anya did you wrong, but you have responsibilities and commitments here! We have two weeks before we’re supposed to play the biggest competition of our careers; how are we supposed to replace you? Two weeks, play the competition, and then you can run off to mope and find yourself and cleanse your soul or whatever it is you’re wanting to do. Please?”

“I can’t, Mila. I know I’m letting you guys down, but every time I touch my cello, all I can do is cry. So much of my music was about her. You’ll find a cellist, and it won’t be perfect, but they’ll be better than me.” Georgi glanced over at Viktor and Yuri. “I’m sorry. I really am, but I can’t play. If I can’t play, I can’t compete, and at least this way you guys have a chance.” He hung up the FaceTime call, leaving Mila sputtering.

“I cannot believe that douchebag. We’ve been trying for three years just to get into this competition, and he’s picking now to pull his drama bullshit?” Yuri exploded.

“He’s a cellist. Name one cellist you’ve ever met who didn’t have the world’s most overinflated ego,” Viktor teased.

“Oh, right, because you violinists are any better,” Mila shot back. “Tell me you weren’t going to quit after the competition to go find your dancing boy from the club the other night.”

“Quit? That wasn’t the plan. Take some time off, sure. We’d all agreed to that unless we did so well that Yakov was so busy fielding performance request calls that we couldn’t, remember?” Viktor winked at Mila. “Any ideas how to find a cellist for this competition that won’t run screaming when they realize what we need?”

“Cellists have big egos, you say,” Mila drawled. “So we advertise that we need a savior who can handle rough conditions and that we don’t really expect anyone to be good enough. We’ll have them beating down our doors to prove that they are the exception sent by God himself to solve our problem, right?”

Yuri snorted. “She’s not wrong. Unless you know a cellist looking for a job, that’s probably our best bet.”

 

Despite repeated demands that Phichit not interrupt him during practice, Phichit never seemed to get the memo. “Yuuri, I signed you up for an audition!”

“What? Why? Audition for what? Why are you interrupting me during practice?” Yuuri snatched at the flyer Phichit held. “Come on, give me something.”

“I’m interrupting you during practice because the audition is, and I quote, ‘as soon as you can get him here.’ Because you’re too good to sit on the sidelines and watch the Haydn Competition when you have the chance to play in it, and no one blames you for the fact that we didn’t make it. You know the music, because you’ve been playing with us, so it’s just a matter of catching on to a different quartet’s cues and personalities. If anyone can pull this off, it’s you, and if you suck, they’re not gonna blame you for it. It’s perfect!” Phichit backed out of Yuuri’s range for smacking him with a bow. “Pack up, get dressed, and let’s go.”

Yuuri stared at the door. He did want to compete in the Haydn Competition, that was true, and he did know the music. If the quartet was looking for a cellist now, then it was clearly an emergency and they would likely have the sense to know better than to blame the guy hauling their butts out of the fire if things went wrong.

It wouldn’t be the same, competing with a group of strangers instead of with Phichit, Leo, and Guang Hong, but their quartet hadn’t made the cut. Objectively, Phichit was right. It wasn’t Yuuri’s fault. Leo, their second violinist, had gotten food poisoning, and Guang Hong, their violist, was so worried about Leo that he’d struggled to focus.

The worst thing that could happen at this audition is the group could say no. It was certainly worth a try. Yuuri thanked his lucky stars that he’d gotten his suit cleaned already instead of procrastinating as he got dressed and checked to make sure his cello was audition-ready. It was.

 

“You’re a genius, Mila.” Viktor hadn’t expected this to work so quickly. Yuri had posted the message on social media, and not ten minutes later, they’d gotten their first call. Three auditions later, they had one person they thought was a possibility and two that they’d rejected on the spot. They had another person coming in to audition, and they could have a cellist by the end of the day if this audition was what his friend had promised he was.

Lilia escorted the auditioner to the room. There was a heavy curtain between the three members and the auditioner to allow for a blind audition for the first part, at least. The part where they tested their chemistry had to be done in-person, but for a test of skills and music, it could be done this way.

“Have a seat. How long do you require to warm up?” Lilia asked.

The voice that answered was soft, hesitant, not at all what Viktor expected from a cellist. “My friend interrupted me in the middle of practice to tell me to come audition. Let me run a couple scales and I’ll be good to go.” Japanese accent. Unusual in this part of the world, but not unheard of, especially not among musicians. The scales he ran were beautiful, too. No lack of skill.

Lilia asked him to play a couple more scales, along with some common warm-up exercises, and Viktor was starting to be convinced they’d found their cellist. He and Mila exchanged impressed looks, and even Yuri’s hostile body language had relaxed slightly. Then Lilia asked the auditioner to play a selection of his choice, and Viktor braced for yet another round of Dvorak. Instead, he chose to play Haydn. Not just any Haydn, but one of the required pieces for the upcoming competition.

Now Yuri was sitting forward, eyebrows up at his hairline, mouth hanging open. Viktor couldn’t blame him. Whoever this person was, he was good. Technically, at least as good as Georgi. Viktor briefly considered interrupting the sight reading test, but decided against it. If nothing else, he’d get to listen to this man’s playing some more. The sight reading went as well as could be asked.

Lilia stepped behind the curtain, took one look at the three of them, and didn’t bother to ask them anything before stepping back out. “I think there can be little doubt about your skill, so we’d like to test your chemistry with the rest of the quartet. Is there a competition piece for this year you’re particularly comfortable playing?”

“The Rondo from The Bird is my favorite, but if they’d rather play something else, I’m happy to play whatever they ask,” he said. Viktor smiled. The Bird was his favorite, too. Yuri was rolling his eyes, but thankfully for everyone, Yuri wasn’t in charge.

Mila stepped around the curtain. “That’s fine by us! Hi, I’m Mila Babicheva, viola. Our violinists are being drama queens, it would seem, so welcome. We’re all very impressed by you.”

As Mila probably intended, Yuri snatched up his violin and stepped out after her. “Yuri Plisetsky, second violin, not a drama queen. Not like the old man.”

And that was Viktor’s cue. “Viktor Niki…for…ov…” He trailed off, staring in shock. It looked like he didn’t have to take time off to find his cute dancing boy after all. He could feel Mila, Yuri, and Lilia all staring at him, but he didn’t care. Viktor was not taking his eyes off of the boy. “Katsuki Yuuri?”

Yuuri was staring back at him, mouth open, bright red. Yuri waved a hand in front of his face, causing him to jump. “Yes! Um. Yes, sorry, I’m… I’m Yuuri. You’re… you’re here. You’re in this quartet.”

“Yes, and now so are you, most likely!” Viktor chirped. “Let’s get this over with, just in case, but I fully expect to be inviting you to join us in a few minutes.”

 

At some point, Yuuri would have to go back. There was no escaping it. He couldn’t afford to buy a new cello, not when his old one was still perfectly good, just currently in Viktor Nikiforov’s quartet’s practice space.

He’d been feeling so confident after the first part of the audition, but then Viktor had showed up and acted like he knew Yuuri. He’d blown the last part of the audition so badly it would be impossible for anyone to ever want Yuuri to play cello for them again, let alone the best quartet in the world. At least, in Yuuri’s opinion. So many mistakes, so much nervousness that must have been blindingly obvious, there was no way Viktor would ever agree to let Yuuri into the group.

Of course it had to be Viktor Nikiforov. Viktor was the best violinist in the world, and that wasn’t just Yuuri’s opinion. That was simple fact. Every competition he entered as a soloist, he won. There was no way Yuuri was ever going to be good enough to play with him.

Phichit met him at the door. “Dude. I know you’re an idiot sometimes, but what the heck are you doing?”

“Um… what?”

Phichit stepped outside, pulling the door closed behind him. “You’ve been running, I can tell, so explain to me how someone beat you here while carrying your cello.”

“They… had a car?” Yuuri guessed. It was all he could think of while his brain was in full panic mode. If they had his cello, that meant it was someone from the audition, which meant that he couldn’t even let the rejection phone call go to voicemail. He’d have to hear it straight from someone’s lips. Hopefully Yuri, but Yuri was so small Yuuri wasn’t sure he could carry a cello this far.

Phichit looked pointedly around. Okay. There were no cars. It had been a dumb idea. Yuuri didn’t have anything else, though, causing Phichit to roll his eyes. “Come on. Madame Baranovskaya is waiting for you. Catch your breath, fix your hair, and let’s go talk to her.”

Well, at least it wasn’t Viktor. “Madame?”

“Minako would be very disappointed right now,” Phichit tutted. “Lilia Baranovskaya? Minako’s hero? Why she’s working with a string quartet, I can’t say, but she’s a world-famous dancer.”

Yuuri had just caught his breath and determined that he was going to go in and face the music, but now the embarrassment flooded right back. He should have recognized her. She’d looked familiar, and he could only blame the context for not realizing who she was. He covered his face with his hands. “I can’t go in there,” he moaned. “Phichit, please, go tell her that I’m sorry but I’ve died of embarrassment.”

“Nope. Come on.” Phichit grabbed Yuuri’s arm and forced him through the door. “You are facing Madame Baranovskaya and you are talking to her. She wouldn’t say anything about how your audition went, so whatever it is she came to say, she’ll only say to you.”

“Indeed. Katsuki Yuuri. I apologize for not recognizing you, but the most recent picture I’d seen from Minako, you were six,” Lilia said. She held out a hand. “It’s good to meet you in person.”

“You, too,” Yuuri said, shaking the hand offered. “I’m sorry it was like this.”

“You left in a bit of a hurry. Viktor wanted to go after you, but then I noticed you’d left your cello. I considered just leaving it – after all, for the next two weeks, you might as well just leave it there – but then again, I can’t be sure you’ll accept.”

“Accept what?” That he might as well not play, because it would be pointless? That he might as well give up and go home and help Mari run the family onsen?

“Yuri has informed Viktor that if he’s the reason you ran out of there like that, there will be pain and suffering. Specifically, Viktor’s. All three agree that you are precisely what the quartet needs, so I came to discuss rehearsal schedules and travel plans for the Haydn Competition. If, of course, you’re still interested in playing with us?”

Yuuri’s jaw dropped, and he stared at Lilia. “Seriously? They still want me after that awful audition?”

Lilia frowned at him. “If that’s what you consider awful, then forget the question. You are coming if I have to carry you on the plane myself.”

Laughter caused both Lilia and Yuuri to jump. Yuuri had forgotten Phichit was there. “Oh my god, I have to hear all about this awful audition. Sorry, I know you two have a lot to talk about, but… this is the funniest thing I’ve ever heard.”

 

It was the biggest relief of Viktor’s life when Yuuri and his cello returned a couple hours after the cellist had fled the audition. Quite aside from the personal relief of seeing Yuuri come back and not having to admit to having memorized the address from Lilia finding it on the case, it meant that Yuuri was willing to go through with this and play with the quartet. Despite his prickle, he and Yuri agreed that Yuuri just might be a better fit than Georgi had been. Mila disagreed, but Viktor was convinced it was mostly out of loyalty to their old friend.

Yuuri set up his cello and then turned to face the others. “I’m sorry for running out like that. It won’t happen again.”

“Don’t worry about it! I take it you’re accepting the offer to join us?”

“Y-yes.” Yuuri’s cheeks reddened a little, and he wouldn’t look straight at Viktor. “I don’t have anything else going on over the next couple weeks, and my roommate is cancelling the few things I did have, so I’m available for as much practice as you guys want me for.”

“Yay!” Viktor hugged Yuri. “I told you I didn’t scare him off already!”

“Ugh, whatever.” Yuri shoved Viktor off of him. “If we’re gonna practice, we should probably do that, not be disgusting old men.”

 

The night before leaving for the Haydn Competition, Yuuri locked himself in his room. It was no surprise when, five minutes later, Phichit was sitting beside him with his arms around him, and Celestino was standing nearby. “Is there some sort of phone alert? I lock my door and your phone starts playing Beethoven or something?”

“Brahms, but close enough,” Phichit said. “Come on, Yuuri. I’ve talked to Mila. She still thinks they’d be better off with Georgi, but even she’s admitting that that’s only because they’ve been playing together for years now instead of because he’s better.”

“What if they want me to stay?” Yuuri asked. “I can’t just leave you guys…” As much as he’d like to stay with Viktor and the others, this was supposed to be short-term. Yuri had mentioned that they were planning time off after the Haydn, and when they came back, Georgi might be ready to come back, too. Of course, Yuri had also said that if Georgi did come back, it might be to find himself out of a job, something Viktor agreed with. Georgi suddenly abandoning the group hadn’t sat right with anyone. Yuuri couldn’t abandon his.

Celestino smiled at him and shook his head. “There’s a kid I’ve been working with, Minami Kenjirou, who I think could come in and do just fine. He’s not you, but he’s good, and he and Guang Hong are already friends. If the Feltsman Quartet asks you to stay, stay.”

Phichit tightened his grip on Yuuri. “And if you blow this competition so badly that they never want to speak to you again, we’ll take you back. Just to be clear. This is not your whole professional career riding on anything. I don’t expect that to happen, but if it does.”

“Thanks. I can’t believe I have this opportunity, and I’m freaking out over it.” He looked up. “Thanks for being here, for supporting me.”

“Of course we support you, dummy! You’re my best friend,” Phichit protested. “Now, talk to me, what’s the plan for making both of your big dreams come true at the same time?”

Yuuri drew back. “Do I want to know what you’re talking about?”

“Duh, Viktor?” Phichit said. “I know I’m useless at romance, which is why I brought Ciao Ciao with me on this meltdown intervention. He can probably give you better advice than getting yourself drunk enough to get on a pole and leave Viktor no choice but to fall in love with you.”

“That probably would work,” Celestino admitted. “If you want romantic, though, you might want to go for something else. Take him shopping, buy him a nice present, something like that. Go out for a nice romantic dinner. Forget the poles, only drink enough to calm your nerves, not cloud your judgment.”

“You two are both ridiculous,” Yuuri grumbled. “Viktor wouldn’t see me that way.”

“Yes, he would,” Phichit and Celestino said in unison. Phichit stuck his tongue out at Celestino and added, “I’m half-convinced he does, but I can’t figure out when he’d have seen you dance.”

“Huh?” That made no sense. Other than his own basement, where Celestino had installed a barre and mirrors so that Yuuri could practice properly, he hadn’t danced in over a year. One good reason to go with one of Celestino’s suggestions – he hadn’t been on a pole in even longer. It was far more likely that Viktor would laugh at him than be charmed.

“Mila says that before you showed up, Viktor’s plan for the time off they’re expecting was to go look for a cute Japanese dancing boy he met, but then you walked in and joined the quartet so he doesn’t have to.” Phichit shrugged at Yuuri’s obvious inability to provide answers. “There you go, ask him about that?”

 

The preliminary round of competition had gone well, Viktor thought. Not as well as it would have with a Georgi in his right mind, but better than any of the realistic possibilities. The judges’ comments had been harsh but fair, and Yuuri drew no more than his fair share of the criticism. Viktor had even heard some gossip from Christophe that his quartetmates refused to believe that Yuuri had only been with them for two weeks.

With a day off before the Finals, Viktor had expected that Yuuri’s nerves would settle down. Instead, at breakfast, Yuuri had seemed worse. Mila had left immediately after breakfast to go hang out with her friend Sara, and Yuri not long after with his new friend Otabek. “Are you heading out, too?” Yuuri asked.

“That depends! If you have other plans, I’ll probably see if Christophe wants to go shopping, but if you want me to spend the day with you, I’m perfectly happy with that,” Viktor said, winking at Yuuri to see the adorable blush Yuuri always got. He wasn’t disappointed, and he was pleasantly surprised when Yuuri asked him to come shopping with him instead.

Yuuri’s stamina impressed Viktor. After hours of shopping, he barely looked tired at all as he frantically searched for a bag of nuts they’d lost somewhere. “Yuuri, it’s just some nuts. They’re gone, we can just imagine that some squirrel is having a very good day.”

“Fine. Let’s… go…” Yuuri stared over Viktor’s shoulder. “Come on!” He grabbed Viktor’s hand and took off. Viktor, having expected more of a fight, went along without resistance, but decided to enjoy the ride.

Yuuri made him wait outside the jewelry shop, but that was okay. Viktor loved surprises. He even had a big one for Yuuri, which he was about to spring. He led Yuuri to a Japanese restaurant run by immigrants from Japan. Yuuri had mentioned that his favorite food was his mother’s katsudon, and this place was supposed to have very good katsudon. Not Yuuri’s mother’s, but still good.

Viktor loved it, but the look on Yuuri’s face when he realized that this was the real thing was the best part of the meal. Between that and the snow that had started softly falling by the time they left, Viktor couldn’t imagine this day getting any better.

As they walked back to the hotel, Yuuri stopped under a streetlamp in front of a church. “Viktor, have you ever seen me dance?”

“Of course! Don’t you remember?” Viktor certainly couldn’t forget the night that something came into his life that made him remember it wasn’t all about music. He’d watched dancing before, and of course he was a pretty good dancer himself, but Yuuri? It just wasn’t fair to anyone else there that night. Yuuri didn’t dance to the music, he was the music. He didn’t need a spotlight to be the only thing in the room Viktor could see. Viktor had spent the next month kicking himself for not getting a phone number to go with the name.

Yuuri didn’t remember, that much was obvious from the way he was staring at Viktor with panic in his eyes. “At least tell me there wasn’t a pole involved?”

“Not unless you count Anatol Nezda,” Viktor said, and Yuuri’s tension broke with a snort. “About six weeks ago? Club Euphonia?”

“The night Phichit’s hamster got sick,” Yuuri said, eyes going wide. “He was supposed to be there, but then his hamster got sick and he went home, and I don’t remember much after that. He was so apologetic the next morning when he realized he’d left me there alone after how much we’d had to drink.”

Now it was Viktor’s turn to stare uncomprehendingly. “You’re that coordinated _blackout drunk_?”

“Um… apparently?” Yuuri reddened, but this time, Viktor couldn’t appreciate it. He was too stunned from realizing how good a dancer Yuuri must be when he was sober. “I’m sorry I forgot. Thank you for remembering and letting me know now.” He reached into the bag from the jewelry store, pulling out two rings. “I don’t know how long I’ll be with your quartet, but these two weeks have been unforgettable to me. I wanted something to remind me that this was real, and to thank you for giving me the opportunity, so… tell me something?” He took Viktor’s hand and put one of the two rings on it.

Viktor recovered quickly enough from his shock to take the other ring from Yuuri. “Of course. I hope this competition, no matter how we do tomorrow, isn’t the end for us. I wish you’ll never leave the quartet.”

“You mean that?” Yuuri asked, eyes sparkling.

“Of course! You can’t say something you don’t mean while you put a ring on someone’s hand.” Viktor lifted Yuuri’s hand, now with ring, to his lips and kissed the ring. Hoping he was reading Yuuri’s reaction right, he stepped close to Yuuri and bent to kiss him, as well. It took a second for Yuuri to respond, but when he did, it was exactly what Viktor was hoping for. Yuuri kissed back, holding onto Viktor to keep himself standing.

 

Only the ring on his hand could convince Yuuri that last night was real, that he’d pulled off Celestino and Phichit’s romantic scheme. He could just hear Phichit when he found out exactly what Yuuri had gone with for the present. Now if they could just win the competition, this would be the perfect trip.

It didn’t take long for Mila and Yuri to figure out what had happened, thanks to Viktor greeting Yuuri with another kiss. Fortunately, they seemed to have expected it, as all that happened was a quick squee from Mila and some grumbling about gross old men from Yuri. Once they were in their seats ready to play, it was all shoved aside.

Yuuri played his absolute best, hoping it would be enough. There were two groups playing after them, so it would be a bit of a wait before they’d know. The time seemed to drag by, but finally, all of the finalists were called back for announcements.

They started from the bottom, and with every placement called, Yuuri squeezed Viktor’s hand tighter. If it weren’t for the fact that there were only ten groups, Yuuri would start wondering if the Feltsman Quartet had been forgotten by the time they got to third place and it once again wasn’t them.

Normally, the announcers liked to drag out the suspense when it came down to the final two. This announcer wasn’t like that. “This year’s runners-up are the Karparov Quartet, featuring Sara Crispino, first violin, Michele Crispino, second violin, Christophe Giacometti, viola, and Emil Nekola, cello. Which makes the Feltsman Quartet our winners. A round of applause for Viktor Nikiforov, first violin, Yuri Plisetsky, second violin, Mila Babicheva, viola, and Katsuki Yuuri, cello.”

 

The planned time off didn’t happen. It couldn’t. Yakov and Lilia between them could barely keep up with everyone’s calls requesting the quartet to come perform. Instead of getting some rest, they would be going on a world tour.

Rehearsal was less packed than it had been in the weeks leading up to the contest, but still took up most of Yuuri and Viktor’s time. They spent most of their free time together, whether that was going out and doing things or hanging out at Yuuri’s place with Phichit and his hamsters. Viktor loved getting to watch Yuuri dance properly, and Minako decided that she loved Viktor when she realized that Yuuri was once again taking his dance practice as seriously as he took his cello.

Yuuri was teaching Yuri some ballet choreography to show Lilia when Georgi called. “I just heard you won the Haydn Competition. I’m so proud of you all, and see, I told you you’d be fine without me. You guys sounded great. Yuuri, congratulations, and I hope you enjoy your chance to play with the greatest musicians in the world.”


End file.
